What can you do to help your loved ones suffering from mental illness? How can you care for sufferers?
While people suffering from mental illness need professional help, support from their loved ones is also an essential part of their recovery. The quality of our relationships play an important role in determining our health. People with mental illness often have poor social health since their illness causes a breakdown of their relationships. While the sufferers themselves must take an initiative to improve their relationships, their loved ones can also act as caregivers and provide them with the necessary support.
Caregivers can be parents, siblings, friends, partners or the children of sufferers. Before providing care, it is important for caregivers to understand that caring for sufferers can be a very stressful experience, and so they must take care of themselves so that they can look after their loved ones effectively. For more information visit the caring for caregivers section.
Some steps that caregivers can take which can be helpful include:
- Educating yourself about mental illness is helpful because in order to deal with a problem it is essential to first understand its nature and its causes. While doing so, it is important to look for the right resources because there is a lot of misinformation about mental illness which can cause us to lose hope. For more information, visit the mental illness section.
- Viewing sufferers as human beings first and foremost, and patients of mental illness as second. It is important for caregivers not to label sufferers as “crazy” because this can increase the stigma they are experiencing and impede their journey of recovery.
- Encouraging sufferers to seek professional help and becoming familiar with the different treatment options that exist. Caregivers should also learn more about the medications that sufferers are taking (if any) since this can help them understand their side-effects and impact on the sufferers.
- Giving sufferers the freedom to make their own decisions about treatment and respecting their privacy. One of the most common causes of mental health problems is the lack of a sense of freedom among sufferers. This is worsened when caregivers assume that sufferers are unable to make the right decisions and impose their own decisions on them. Even though this may seem difficult, it is crucial for caregivers to give sufferers space to help boost their self esteem.
- Treating sufferers compassionately and being a source of support for them. This includes using compassionate listening to ease the distress of sufferers. Loneliness is one of the most common symptoms of mental illness and just being there for a sufferer can be a great motivator for recovery. This includes assuring the sufferers that the caregiver is there to comfort them, and not to judge their actions, or decrease the significance of their suffering.